Posted on 05/18/2006 7:57:09 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
SAN FRANCISCO – University of California President Robert C. Dynes, under fire over millions of dollars in bonuses and other perks secretly paid to top executives, got the support of his board Thursday.
“He is the appropriate leader to resolve these issues and guide the university through this difficult chapter in its history,” UC Board of Regents Chairman Gerald Parsky said.
Smiles and applause greeted the statement, read as the board held its regular meeting in San Francisco. Still, the regents had some stern words for their president, saying they “hold him accountable for the university's compensation problems and he has acknowledged his responsibility.”
“I don't think it's letting President Dynes off easy at all,” Parsky said outside the meeting.
Concerns about how UC rewards top-ranked employees began last fall when the San Francisco Chronicle reported that executives were getting millions of dollars in bonuses, housing allowances and other perks at a time when the 10-campus system was sharply hiking student fees, saying they had no choice due to state funding cutbacks.
A subsequent state audit found the extra compensation accounted for $334 million out of $9.3 billion total compensation in 2004-05. Auditors found that UC administrators skirted policies and repeatedly failed to disclose the extra pay to the public or even get required approval from their own board.
Interestingly, some of the disclosure policies violated were put in place in 1993 after a similar uproar over deals negotiated for some high-ranking employees.
Regents, who met behind closed doors to discuss the compensation issues with Dynes on Wednesday, said they will not rely on promises of reform to fix the problem. Among other things, they are establishing a committee to provide direct oversight over compensation and creating a compliance office that will report directly to regents.
Administrators say the compensation packages are what they need to compete for top talent, and say that UC salaries actually lag their peers at comparable institutions. Still, Dynes said Wednesday “overactive secrecy” led to a culture “of trying to get away with as much as possible and disclose as little as possible.”
Critics had insisted that Dynes should go, something the president said he took to heart.
“I'm the president of the university and I made mistakes,” Dynes said. “That's a hard thing for anybody to own up to.”
But Dynes said although he considered resigning he decided the job was worth fighting for, adding he still has “fire in my guts.”
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On the Net: www.universityofcalifornia.edu
Is any effort going to be made to recover the unauthorized funds?
Inmate committee backs asylum takeover.
2 words.
fat & chance
Why don't they apply to UC the same standards that are applied to American corporations?
"Inmate committee backs asylum takeover."
Ain't been called "the open ward" for over 60 years for nothing.
"A typical California role model."
Please don't stereotype us - there are more than a few good people here!
The freaking UC, CSU, and CCC school systems are an arm of the welfare state. They compare their administrators' pay to private school admin. but there is a crucial difference: your money comes directly from taxpayers who are forced to give it; private schools raise their own money.
Think if this guy were a conservative. I know, I know, he never would have been hired in the first place, but if he were, all hell would break loose.
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